Universal remote machinery controller and monitor

ABSTRACT

A system is provided herein for remotely controlling and monitoring machinery, the machinery having a control network for control thereof, one or more switches coupled to the control network for controlling the machinery via the control network. The system includes a controller hardwired coupled to the control network of the machinery. The controller is configured to control the machinery via the control network separately from the switches, and the controller is configured to monitor operation of the machinery. In addition, the system includes an arrangement for receiving signals for controlling the controller from a remote location and an arrangement for transmitting, to a remote location, information collected by the controller resulting from the controller monitoring operation of the machinery. Advantageously, with the subject invention, the system can control and monitor machinery from remote locations directly. In the event of faults or failures, corrective action may be taken using the subject invention.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Appl. No.61/155,376, filed Feb. 25, 2009, the entire contents of which are herebyincorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to remote controlling and monitoring ofmachinery.

Machinery, particularly heavy machinery, may be located at various andremote locations far from a central organization or authorityresponsible for the machinery. Nonetheless, maintenance and monitoringof the machinery is continuously required. For example, electricalgenerators, which act as primary or back-up power supplies, require notonly regular maintenance, but periodic start-ups to ensure properoperation. Such periodic start-ups may be mandated by law.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system is provided herein for remotely controlling and monitoringmachinery, the machinery having a control network for control thereof,one or more switches coupled to the control network for controlling themachinery via the control network. The system includes a controllerhardwired coupled to the control network of the machinery. Thecontroller is configured to control the machinery via the controlnetwork separately from the switches, and the controller is configuredto monitor operation of the machinery. In addition, the system includesan arrangement for receiving signals for controlling the controller froma remote location and an arrangement for transmitting, to a remotelocation, information collected by the controller resulting from thecontroller monitoring operation of the machinery. Advantageously, withthe subject invention, the system can control and monitor machinery fromremote locations directly. In the event of faults or failures,corrective action may be taken using the subject invention.

These and other features of the invention will be better understoodthrough a study of the following detailed description and accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1-3 are schematics of a system, and components thereof, inaccordance with the subject invention; and,

FIG. 4 is a flowchart depicting possible operation of a system inaccordance with the subject invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A system, generally depicted with the reference number 10, is providedherein which is capable of controlling and/or monitoring machinery froma remote location. The system is particularly well-suited for use withemergency generators, but can be used with other machinery, such aspumps (e.g., fire pumps, sewage pumps, etc.), compressors, turbines,water wells and tanks, HVAC heating systems and air conditioners,uninterruptible power supplies, battery chargers and batteries,battery-operated train gates, battery-operated emergency lights,security gates and entry alarms, alarm systems, permanently mountedrefrigeration equipment, mobile refrigeration equipment and so forth.The system 10 can be used with various machinery, not limited to heavymachinery, and is intended to cover machines and systems which arecontinuously operating and/or maintained in stand-by operation ready foroperation. The system 10 permits test start-ups and monitoring duringnormal operation and/or test runs. In addition to monitoring theoperation of the machinery, the system can monitor ambient conditions oroperational characteristics, such as various temperatures and electricalcharacteristics, such as output voltage.

With reference to the Figures, the system 10 generally includes one ormore controllers 12 and a master server 14. The controllers 12 arelocated on-site at the locations of machinery to be controlled and/ormonitored (M₁, M₂, M₃ . . .). As discussed in more detail below, thecontrollers 12 are communicatively linked, such as by hard wiring and/orwireless, with the master server 14 which is located remotely from themachinery M₁-M₃.

The controllers 12 may be one or more components each provided in asingle or multiple enclosures. Each of the controllers 12 includes acomputer processing unit (CPU) 16 which is configured to receive andexecute commands from the master server 14.

The machinery M₁-M₃ each includes a control network 18 configured forcontrol of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ and relatedaspects. The control network 18 will include one or more switches 20configured, such as by hard wired coupling through conductors 22, tooperate the machinery M₁-M₃. The switches 20 may be configured to notonly cause activation and deactivation of the machinery M₁-M₃, but alsomay cause control over other operating characteristics, such as placingthe machinery M₁-M₃ into an automatic or stand-by state which isactivated upon an occurring event. For example, the machinery M₁-M₃ maybe in the form of a back-up generator, and the switches 20 may be placedinto an automatic stand-by phase where the generator is caused toautomatically activate when loss or reduction of power is detected.

The switches 20 may be located on a control panel 24 located at or inproximity to the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃. The controlpanel 24 may include, in addition to the switches 20, indicator lights26, gauges 28, and one or more warning devices, such as siren 30,speaker 31 for broadcasting live or recorded messages (which may be invarious languages) and/or horn 32.

Each of the controllers 12 is hard wire coupled to the control network18 of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃. The controller 12is coupled so as to permit the controller 12 to control operation of themachinery M₁-M₃ separately from the switches 20. Any wiringconfiguration permitting parallel control with the switches 20 may beutilized. By way of non-limiting example, a starter relay 34 may beprovided with each of the controllers 12 which is wired across on/offswitch 20 a which is the switch 20 for activating and deactivating thecorresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃. With activation of thestarter relay 34, the start circuit of the corresponding piece of themachinery M₁-M₃ may be closed within the control network 18, thus,causing activation. This activation is independent of the switch 20 a.Deactivation of the starter relay 34 will result in correspondingdeactivation of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃. Withthis arrangement, the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ may be caused tostart from a remote location. In this manner, the piece of the machineryM₁-M₃ may be periodically tested to ensure proper operation.

The controller 12 may be provided with additional relays which may becoupled to the control network 18 for different purposes. For example,one or more secondary relays 36 may be provided to activate a light,such as one of the indicator lights 26 or a stand-alone light 38, forvarious purposes, such as impending start-up, service technician enroute, etc. One or more of the secondary relays 36 may be also coupledto a warning device such as the siren 30, the speaker 31 or the horn 32,to notify of impending start-up or other indications. Further, one ormore of the secondary relays 36 may be coupled to a reset circuit of thecontrol network 18 such that, with activation of the correspondingsecondary relays 36, the control network 18 and the corresponding pieceof the machinery M₁-M₃ may be reset. With this configuration, uponfailed start-up, remote reset may be initiated as an attempt to rectifyany problems. The secondary relays 36 may be wired in parallel toportions of the control network 18 so as to independently controlportions thereof. For example, the control network 18 may be configuredto activate the indicator lights 26 independently of the controller 12and vice versa. Activation and de-activation of the secondary relays 36results in corresponding activation and de-activation of thecorresponding aspects of the control network 18. The secondary relays 36may be located in the controller 12 and/or on the control network 18(e.g., in the control panel 24).

The controllers 12 each include a transmitter 40 and receiver 42. Thetransmitter 40 and the receiver 42 are configured to receive signalsfrom, and transmit signals to, the master server 14. The transmitter 40and the receiver 42 may be hard wired coupled or wirelessly coupled tothe master server 14. Preferably, a wireless connection is utilized. Thesystem 10 may utilize a wireless network between the controllers 12 andthe master server 14, the wireless network being any of various wirelessnetworks including an 802.11-compliant network, Bluetooth network, highspeed circuit switched data (HSCSD) network, packet data cellular(PDC-P) network, general packet radio servers (GPRS) network, 1x radiotransmission technology (1xRTT) network, IrDA network, multichannelmultipoint distribution service (MMDS) network, local multipointdistribution service (LMDS) network, worldwide interoperability formicrowave access (WiMAX) network, and/or any other network thatcommunicates using a wireless protocol. The master server 14 includes amaster transmitter 44 and master receiver 46 configured to communicatewith the transmitters 40 and the receivers 42 of the controllers 12. Thecommunication may be through signals 48 which may be transmittedwirelessly and/or through hard wired conductors 50.

The signals 48 may be generated by and transmitted from the masterserver 14 to the controllers 12 to cause control over the correspondingpieces of the machinery M₁-M₃. The signals 48 via the CPU's 16 of thecontrollers 12 cause activation or de-activation of the starter relay 34and/or the secondary relays 36 as needed.

The transmitter 40 and the receiver 42 for each of the controllers 12preferably is a single device such as a modem, wireless modem, and/orcellular transmitter (e.g., using any of the aforementioned wirelessnetworks), but may be separate components. Likewise, the mastertransmitter 44 and the master receiver 46 preferably is a single devicesuch as a modem, wireless modem and/or cellular transmitter (e.g., usingany of the aforementioned wireless networks), but may be separatecomponents. The master receiver 46 may also include a router 47configured to intercept and queue the signals 48 from a plurality of thecontrollers 12. The router 47 may be further configured to transmit thesignals 48 in an orderly sequence for further processing by the masterserver 14. The signals 48 may be converted into various forms at one ormore locations in the system 10.

As is known in the art, the transmitters 40, the receivers 42, themaster transmitter 44 and the master receiver 46 may be provided withantennas 52 to enhance signal transmission and reception. Thecontrollers 12, as discussed above, may be provided in multiplecomponents. The transmitter 40 and the receiver 42 of the controller 12may be provided in a first enclosure 54 with other components of thecontroller 12, e.g., the starter relay 34, the secondary relays 36, andso forth, being provided in a second enclosure 56. With thisarrangement, the first enclosure 54 may be located at an on-sitelocation with better signal reception, for example, near a door in aplant, outside of a machine enclosure, outside of a control panel, etc.The second enclosure 56 may be located at or near the control network 18of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃, such as inside amachine enclosure, inside a control panel, etc. The first and secondenclosures 54, 56 may be communicatively coupled through any knowntechnique, such as by hard wiring or wireless. Preferably, the first andsecond enclosures 54, 56 are coupled together by a hardwired connection55, such as a I2C bus connector, or wireless connection, such as bywireless radios configured as an 802.15 compliant network (e.g.,802.15.4-2003), such as configured for ZigBee communication protocols.

The controllers 12 may each also include a module 58 configured toperiodically monitor the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃. Themodule 58 may be a circuit board or other logic controller which maysense a fault in the operation of the machinery M₁-M₃. A timer 60, whichmay be provided in with each of the controllers 12 in hardware orsoftware form, may be coupled with the module 58 to set predeterminedintervals of time for signal detection. The module 58 may be configuredto detect fault with change in condition or occurrence of event. Forexample, the module 58 may be configured to continuously monitor voltageat one or more locations in the control network 18 so as to compare witha threshold voltage amount or ground voltage.

One or more of the secondary relays 36 may be coupled to an output orother aspect of the machinery M₁-M₃ to detect operation. For example,with the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ being a generator, output voltagein excess of a threshold may cause an associated one of the secondaryrelays 36 to activate. Where the piece of machinery M₁-M₃ has a driveportion (e.g., an engine) and an output portion (e.g., an electricalgenerator) (FIG. 3), failure to detect output, after a remote start ofthe drive portion by the starter relay 34, may indicate a problem orfault. In such an event, the starter relay 34 may be de-activated tocause the drive portion to shut down. A subsequent attempt at reset andre-start may be tried.

The controllers 12 may also be coupled to one or more transducers 62measuring operational characteristics of the machinery M₁-M₃. Thetransducers 62 may be used to measure temperature at one or morelocations, such as jacket water hose temperature where the machineryM₁-M₃ is a generator. A clamp 61 may be provided to secure thetransducer 62, or at least a portion thereof, as needed. As will beappreciated by those skilled in the art, other operational or ambientcharacteristics can be monitored, such as outside temperature, pressure,speed (e.g., RPM's), output (e.g., flow rate, electrical output), and soforth. Information collected by the transducers 62 may be transmitted bythe transmitters 40 to the master server 14 directly, or via the CPU's16 and/or the modules 58. The CPU's 16 may include a memory 64 (e.g.,RAM) where collected information may be stored temporarily orpermanently. Optionally, the collected information may be stored in thememories 64 for an interval of time and then transmitted to the masterserver 14. The timers 60 may be configured to have the CPU's 16, e.g.,via the modules 58, request read-outs from the transducers 62 atpredetermined intervals of time, such as hourly, daily, weekly, and soforth, readings. The collected information may be stored at the masterserver 14 and made available for viewing through a graphical userinterface (GUI) 66 in any known form, including a monitor. One or moreinterfaces 68, such as a keyboard, mouse, touch pad, and so forth, maybe provided with the master server 14 to permit control over the system10, for example in causing one or more of the pieces of machinery M₁-M₃to be selected and started for a test (e.g., by causing the masterserver 14 to generate the corresponding signal 48).

The controllers 12 may be each provided with a reader 70 configured todetect a unique signal. The unique signal may be generated by a signaldevice 72, which can be a handheld fob. The signal device 72 may be adirect contact transmitter (e.g., a direct contact transmitter soldunder the trademark “iButton” by Dallas Semiconductor Corp. of Dallas,Tex.) or an RFID device. The controllers 12 may be configured such thatwith the reader 70 detecting a unique signal, the controllers 12 may beplaced into a by-passed state whereby the controllers 12 are preventedfrom controlling the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃. Asignal may be sent from the readers 70, upon detection of the uniquesignal, to the master server 14 so as to indicate that the correspondingcontroller 12 is in the by-passed state. The by-passed state permitsmaintenance of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃, withoutthe possibility of remote start-up by the controller 12. Maintenancepersonnel may be provided with the signal device 72 to permit selectiveby-pass as required. In the by-passed state, one or more of theindicator lights 26 may be activated so as to provide visual indicationof the by-passed state. Activation of the indicator lights 26 may beaccomplished by one or more of the secondary relays 36. Specifically,the relevant secondary relay(s) 36 may be caused to be activated tocause activation of the corresponding indicator light(s) 26. Thecontroller 12 may be taken out of the by-passed state with the lapsingof a predetermined interval of time, which can be measured by the timer60. The controller 12 may be configured so that a warning device, suchas the siren 30, the speaker 31 or the horn 32, is activated within apredetermined interval of time prior to the lapsing of the by-passedstate. This provides warning that the controller 12 will soon becomefully active with the possibility of remote start-up. For example, theby-passed state may be set automatically to be two hours long, with awarning signal being activated at fifteen minutes prior to the end ofthe two-hour period.

The reader 70 may be also configured to detect a unique signal forservice call purposes. The same or a different signal device 72 may beutilized where, upon detection of the unique signal, the reader 70transmits a signal to the master server 14 indicating that a servicecall is requested. A switch may be provided on the signal device 72 topermit the signal device 72 to change the unique signal being emitted.In this manner, the signal device 72 may emit one signal for initiatingby-pass and a second signal for calling for service. Alternatively, twoof the signal devices 72, e.g., two fobs, may be provided each having aunique signal. The reader 70 may be configured to detect both uniquesignals and differentiate between them. To show that the request forservice has been received, the master server 14 may transmit a signal tothe controller 12 to activate one of the indicator lights 26 as anindication that a service technician is en route. The indicator light(s)26 may be activated by one or more of the secondary relays 36. Theservice call signal will have associated therewith the correspondingpiece of the machinery M₁-M₃. With receipt of the service call signal,an operator of the master server 14 may place a call, radio transmissionor electronic message to a service technician, via a portable device 74,which may be a radio, cell phone or web-enabled device. In addition, oralternatively, the master server 14 may be configured to automaticallygenerate an e-mail to the portable device 74 to request the servicecall. Details on the specific piece of machinery M₁-M₃, such as locationand so forth, may be provided to the service technician.

Preferably, the controllers 12 are not sensitive to voltage and may bepowered by electricity taken from the corresponding piece of machineryM₁-M₃, or its associated control network 18. For example, thecorresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ may include a battery 76 towhich power conductors 78 from the controller 12 may be coupled. If thecontroller 12 is provided over multiple enclosures, such as the firstand second enclosures 54, 56, it is preferred that power be transmittedtherebetween.

As discussed above, the master server 14 may be coupled with thecontrollers 12 over a network. The network may be an isolated networksuch as a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN) and/orpart of a global network, such as the Internet. Even as part of a globalnetwork, the system 10 may be isolated from other portions of thenetwork, such as through firewalling or other security measures. Thecontrollers 12 and the master server 14 may each be provided with aunique IP address to define the network. Software updates and otherinformation may be transmitted from the master server 14 to thecontrollers 12 as needed over the network. Isolation of the controllers12 and the master server 14 minimizes the ability of one to hack intothe network and cause unwanted start-up or other deleterious activity.The master server 14 includes a computer processing unit (CPU) and amemory (e.g., RAM) which may be located on one or more devices.

The system 10 can be used to control one or more of the machines M₁-M₃and/or to cause monitoring thereof. The system 10, through transmissionof the signals 48 from the master server 14 to the controllers 12, maycause remote start-up and shut-down of the machinery M₁-M₃ individuallyfor varying lengths of time. This permits remote control for testing andother evaluation of the machinery M₁-M₃. Warning signals, variousaspects of the machinery M₁-M₃, and the corresponding control networks18, may be likewise controlled by the master server 14 throughtransmission of the signals 48 to the controllers 12. The monitoring maybe done continuously as described above. In addition, predeterminedthreshold values may be stored in the CPU 16 of each of the controllers12 and/or the master server 14 which are compared to collectedinformation from monitoring. In this manner, fault may be detected. Forexample, an acceptable temperature range may be set where, if atemperature is detected outside the range by one of the transducers 62,a fault is recognized. The master server 14 and/or the CPU 16 mayconduct such comparisons in determining fault. If the CPU 16 detects thefault, a signal is transmitted to the master server 14. An operator ofthe master server 14 may then place a call or send an e-mail to theoperator 73 of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ therebyproviding notification of the fault. Alternatively, the master server 14may be configured to automatically generate a fault notification e-mail.Correspondingly, if it is detected that the measured data falls withinan acceptable range, notification can be provided of the fault beingcleared. Thus, where a temperature is detected to be within range thathad previously been outside of acceptable range, a notification, byphone or e-mail can be sent that this fault has been cleared. As will beappreciated, any mode of possible notification may be utilized,including, phone call, radio transmission, electronic messaging (e.g.e-mail), text message, on-line posting, and so forth.

The system 10 can be configured to provide notification of variousfaults, such as operational characteristics noted above. In addition,conditions of the control network 18 can be monitored with faultdetection being provided therefor. Voltage, e.g., positive voltage, orground signal may be utilized as an indicator of fault. For example,constant voltage or ground signal may be taken as an input to the module58 and as an indicator of a normal state. For example, the switch 20 amay be provided with three states, an on state, an off state and anautomatic state. The automatic state may be used to put thecorresponding piece of machinery M₁-M₃ into a stand-by state with themachine being caused to activate upon an occurrence of event, such aswith a generator being activated with reduction or loss in power. Thecontrollers 12 may be coupled to the control network 18 such that thestate of the switch 20 a is detected. A default state for the switch 20a may be defined, such as the automatic state. With the switch 20 abeing in the on state, and not in the automatic state, a fault may bedetected with notification being provided thereof. As will be recognizedby those skilled in the art, the controller 12 may be configured tosimultaneously monitor a number of characteristics for fault detectionpurposes, e.g., through a plurality of the transducers 62 and/or thesecondary relays 36.

It is preferred that the controllers 12 monitor the machinery M₁-M₃ evenwith the controllers 12 being in the by-pass state.

The CPU's 16 of each of the controllers 12 may be operatively connectedto the various components of the corresponding controller 12 includingthe starter relay 34, the secondary relays 36, the transmitter 40, thereceiver 42, the module 58, the timer 60, the transducers 62, the memory64, and the reader 70 so as to provide control thereover. The CPU's 16may be modified to communicate with the machinery M₁-M₃ and/or thecentral networks 18 thereof. The machinery M₁-M₃ and/or the controlnetworks 18 may be assigned unique IP addresses and added as part of thenetwork of the system 10. Communication between the CPU's 16 and themachinery M₁-M₃/the control networks 18 may be conducted over hardwiring (e.g., the hardwired connection 55) and/or wirelessly. Variousnetwork protocols may be utilized, such as Modbus protocol.

With reference to FIG. 4, and as described above, the controller 12 maydetect different operating conditions of the corresponding piece of themachinery M₁-M₃ The corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ may beoperating under different conditions, such as for a test, maintenance ornormal operation. With operation of the corresponding piece of themachinery M₁-M₃ being detected (Box 80), the master server 14 and/or theCPU 16 may be checked to determine if the corresponding piece of themachinery M₁-M₃ is in the by-pass state (Box 82). As indicated above, asignal (e.g., the unique signal from the signal device 70) may have beentransmitted to the master server 14 and/or the CPU 16 in entering theby-pass state. If the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ is in the by-passstate (Box 84), and the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ is in an operatingmode, it may be concluded that maintenance of the piece of the machineryM₁-M₃ is being conducted (Box 86). If the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃is not in the by-pass state (Box 88), the system 10 may be evaluated todetermine if a signal was sent to the corresponding controller 12 tocause start-up of the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ (Box 90). If so, itcan be concluded that the machinery is being subjected to a test rununder control of the system 10 (Boxes 92, 94). If no start signal hadbeen sent in the system 10 (Box 96), the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃may be operating under normal conditions, e.g., a generator caused tostart due to power failure. It is possible that the piece of themachinery M₁-M₃ may be inadvertently caused to start, e.g., in the eventof a transfer switch failure where the piece of the machinery M₁-M₃ is agenerator. A fault notification may be sent to the operator of thecorresponding piece of machinery M₁-M₃ as a courtesy notifying them ofthe operating status of the machinery (Box 98). In this manner, theoperator may evaluate if the machinery is operating in normal fashion.

If no operation of the corresponding piece of machinery M₁-M₃ isdetected (Box 100), it can be evaluated if a signal was sent to thecontroller to cause remote start-up (Box 102). If no signal was sent(Box 104), the corresponding piece of machinery M₁-M₃ is in a normal,non-operating state (Box 106). If a signal was sent (Box 108) and therewas failure to start-up (e.g., no detection of output as describedabove), a reset may be attempted using one or more of the secondaryrelays 36 as described above (Box 110). Subsequently, a further attemptto remote start-up may be attempted with subsequent evaluation ofoperation.

The CPU's 16 of the various controllers 12 and/or the master server 14may store information collected by the controllers 12 based on controland monitoring of the machinery M₁-M₃. The stored information mayprovide logs of the various pieces of the machinery M₁-M₃ includingoperating logs and service logs. The logs may be forwarded to servicetechnicians to possibly assist in diagnosing a service problem. Forexample, a repeated fault detection may provide an indication of thesource of a problem. The logs also may be forwarded to the operators 73of the machinery M₁-M₃ as performance and maintenance records. The logsmay be used to compare actual performance of the machinery M₁-M₃ withfuel consumption of the machinery M₁-M₃ to evaluate machine efficiency.

With the system 10, rounds by maintenance personnel may be minimized byconducting remote testing and monitoring of the machinery M₁-M₃. Withtypical procedures, a maintenance worker would travel on-site to thepiece of machinery M₁-M₃ and conduct testing in person. With the system10, the machinery M₁-M₃ may be tested remotely for fixed intervals oftime, e.g., by using the timer 60, and caused to deactivate.Notifications of start-up and shut down may be sent by the master server14 to the operator 73 of the corresponding piece of the machinery M₁-M₃.The system 10 provides an environmentally-friendly, “green” approach toperiodic testing of the machinery M₁-M₃. By eliminating periodic testingby maintenance personnel, and relying on remote testing by the system10, fuel consumption by maintenance workers is lessened with reducedrounds for maintenance personnel.

Under certain federal and local codes, such as NFPA 110, emergencygenerators must be checked and tested weekly. In addition, under othergovernment codes, generator testing can not be conducted on days whichhave bad air quality. If such testing is conducted, fines may beimposed. With the system 10, air quality may be evaluated at a remotelocation with determination of whether or not remote start for testingpurposes should be conducted. Air quality can be evaluated by visitinggovernment web-sites, such as www.airnow.gov. An operator of the masterserver 14 may evaluate air quality and determine optimal times fortesting. The system 10 permits better compliance with air quality codes.

1. A system for remotely controlling and monitoring machinery, themachinery having a control network for control thereof, one or moreswitches coupled to the control network for controlling the machineryvia the control network, said system comprising: a controller hardwiredcoupled to the control network of the machinery, the controller beingconfigured to control the machinery via the control network separatelyfrom the switches, the controller being configured to monitor operationof the machinery; means for receiving signals for controlling thecontroller from a remote location; and, means for transmitting, to aremote location, information collected by the controller resulting fromthe controller monitoring operation of the machinery.
 2. A system as inclaim 1, wherein the controller is selectively by-passable such that, ina by-passed state, said controller is prevented from controlling themachinery.
 3. A system as in claim 2, wherein, with the controller beingin the by-passed state, said controller monitors operation of themachinery.
 4. A system as in claim 2, further comprising a readerconfigured to detect a unique signal, wherein, with detection of theunique signal, the controller enters the by-passed state.
 5. A system asin claim 2, wherein the controller is in the by-passed state for apredetermined period of time.
 6. A system as in claim 5, furthercomprising a warning device, wherein, said warning device beingconfigured to activate at a predetermined interval of time prior to thelapsing of the predetermined period of time for the by-passed state. 7.A system as in claim 6, wherein said warning device is a siren.
 8. Asystem as in claim 6, wherein said warning device is a light.
 9. Asystem as in claim 6, wherein said warning device is a speakertransmitting live or recorded messages.
 10. A system as in claim 1,wherein said controller is configured to monitor one or more operationalcharacteristics of the machinery.
 11. A system as in claim 10, whereinsaid controller is configured to monitor temperature at one or morelocations of the machinery.
 12. A system as in claim 1, wherein theswitches are located on-site with the machinery.
 13. A system as inclaim 1, further comprising a central server configured to initiatesignals for controlling the controller.
 14. A system as in claim 13,further comprising a graphical user interface for interfacing with saidcentral server.
 15. A system as in claim 13, wherein said central serveris configured to receive the information collected by said controllerresulting from said controller monitoring operation of the machinery.16. A system as in claim 1, further comprising a reader configured todetect a unique signal, wherein, with detection of the unique signal,said means for transmitting signals transmits a signal.
 17. A system asin claim 16, wherein the unique signal is generated by a RFID device.18. A system as in claim 16, wherein the unique signal is generated by adirect contact transmitter.